April- Italian Influence Across the World.  Enjoy a sampling of beautifully prepared dishes while tasting wines from across the globe, either from an Italian winemaker or Italian in style. $100

All events are about 3 hours and begin between 5:30 and 6:00 pm.

Look for details and payment information on www.eventbrite.com

Well thanks to Apartment613, who gave me the website address, I grabbed my keys and drove to Booth Street. Now it was sounding more Montreal to me. Drive down a virtually unknown street in the middle of Ottawa for pastries? Hey I’ll do anything for a flaky, delicate and buttery accompaniment to cafe au lait.

The sign outside was delightful. Macarons et Madeleines is run by a Cordon Blue pastry grad, not some fly by night dude randomly setting up a home based business. The inside calm and simple with a gorgeous kitchen and a tray of the most delicious creations of the day.

I immediately knew that a brioche and croissant were in my future. The croissant is the absolute best I’ve tasted in Ottawa so far. Very French in style, flaky and delicate looking but that first bite was butter and richness, needing no condiments at all. The bones of a proper boulangerie is brioche and trust me when I say I’ve seen some awful ones made by excellent chefs. This brioche is an inviting golden brown and there wasn’t an overcooked top in sight. I paired it with gelee de cassis and it was sublime. Buttery and rich it’s middle revealing delicate bubbles from proper handling and baking. I am truly impressed and so thankful that this little piece of France is right here in Ottawa.

The bakery opens at 7:00 am and closes when it’s all gone.

The quality coming from the Niagara vineyards speaks volumes about what is happening in the winery itself. Grapes vinified into an expression of terroir is never more evident than with the super rich 2010 vintage. For me the real standout of the entire tasting was an outstanding Cabernet Franc from Ravine Vineyards. Charming, mouth filling, all black fruit and not a trace of green pepper that has become synonymous with Niagara Cabernet Franc. It left me wanting more and certainly making me start planning a visit to Niagara to see the winemaking talent that is dripping from every barrel. 

Noon sharp with my two boys and my best girl D we joined the line for a place at the Momofuku lunch counter. The steamed pork buns were a must and seconds came soon after. I adore the fatty pork belly, slightly sweet and so succulent, dotted with Sriracha, green onion and a crisp pickled cucumber.

Heaven is a tiny pork infused soft bun of love. If this restaurant ever came up north to these parts I would devour so many of these beauties, but for now it is a once a year guilty pleasure.

I am a huge fan of a well made burger. Where I differ from others is in the thickness of said burger. If it’s about 2 inches thick and dripping I ain’t doin’ it but if it’s about 1/2 an inch I’m all over it.  Known for web cam line checking this little burger joint that can is always impossibly busy. But hey I’m in NYC so in I go. I opted for cheesy goodness and the crinkly fries and rounded it off with a chocolate shake. The shake was a little too sweet for me but the others wanted more. The meat was fresh and the combination of well chosen ingredients (by me) made for a pretty tasty lunch.

Would I wait in that line-up again… in a heartbeat. Great burgers are worth it every time.

My all time fave is Mercury and I am a twitter when a Pommard shows up to a tasting. So being a Pinot lover I jumped at the chance to head to Oregon for a tour of the terroir. I drove into the Willamette and my eyes were sparkling soaking up the gorgeous vistas ahead, filled with hazlenut trees, hops and rows upon rows of Pinot Noir. While they do grow other varietals make no mistake that this is quintessential Pinot country. What I really didn’t know was that there is amazing bubbly to be had here. Sparkling wine is my second favourite wine ever, no matter the country, I was impressed to see these very American wineries make very French style wines. The king of the crop, for me, is none other than Rollin Soles. A native Texan who felt that the Willamette was the perfect marriage of soil and temperature for good Pinot to grow. His love of bubbly has made him one of the finest makers of sparkling wine in the US. Argyle Winery makes truly spectacular wine and the ratings show it.

Now while the big boys like Domaine Serene and Maison Drouhin are here too it was the smaller wineries and the Carlton Winemakers Studio (a beautiful co-operative) that gave me the greatest pride. I met with winemakers and owners who are just making good wine in a very natural way. They love what they do and make you feel very welcome. Tastings are relaxed and informative and most tasting rooms have wine to buy on site, complete with shipping boxes. Gotta love the US shipping laws, service oriented and no duty.

As a Canadian I felt at home with the fabulous views and the endless driving, reminding me a lot of Prince Edward County. The winemakers or vineyard owners were very charming, some chuckling about the stringent liquor boards we have to put up with and some commenting about the few labels that actually make it to Canada, through no fault of their own. I left the Willamette with perhaps an even greater love of Pinot. Oregon makes it in such a French way with all the earthy overtones of Burgundy with a little more upfront fruit. In a blind tasting you may not be able to tell, but the pocketbook may. Searching the provinces I have found that really good Burgundy will set you back between $30 and $100 while really good Oregon Pinot could cost up to $60. Premium is premium let’s not forget but bang for my buck I got a new love now and he’s American.

Wow do people sure stare at you when you have a glass of wine in front of you at a restaurant while pregnant. But nothing is better than the judgemental whispering, eye rolling and jaw dropping when you have a sip of vino while breastfeeding. (Hey I had to get the work done somehow)

Having grown up in a European family I saw nothing wrong with a little nip of wine before, during and after pregnancy. In Spain they gave my mother a bottle of Sangre de Toro after my birth. It was hard to juggle the two sides of me. In North America it is considered dangerous to drink while pregnant, yet I grew up seeing that it was perfectly normal for a woman to have a glass of wine during pregnancy and through breastfeeding. Which side is right? I suppose it’s really a personal preference, so long as either side doesn’t go to extremes.

The worst part of motherhood for me is trying to keep up with the job and having children and trying to do both really well.

I question if it is as hard in other vocations as well? Do other women have the same worries as I did?

I suppose women are always trying to juggle their two distinct jobs, family and career no matter where they live or what they do as a profession.

Being a sommelier at night can’t be tougher as being a nurse working overnight shifts. In the end we must find a balance no matter the job.

It’s hard but if it were easy we might not be as challenged. So I raise a glass to all the ladies out there who are working and keeping it all together so that everyone is taken care of.

Sake is the one wine that my husband and I can find pleasure in drinking together. Although I like the cloudy and silken cold variety he, the beer drinker, loves the hot and easy gulping draft.

When the reports of devastation started bombarding our television screens I was, of course, concerned with my precious Sake breweries. There are over 100 breweries in 3 regions. It is written that each of the 100 breweries have been damaged in some way by the earthquake or tsunami. The extent of the damage is still being explored but some have begun reporting of inventory, building or total loss. Imagine if that happened in Bordeaux?

A Decanter report wrote;
“According to Kenichi Ohashi, a Master of Sake based in Tokyo, the damage to the breweries is just one part of the challenges ahead for Japan’s sake industry. In common with every Japanese industry, the real challenge to sake will be getting the businesses working again in the coming months, with lack of raw materials, fuel, transportation and infrastructure, he said.”

So when it is time to plant the 2011 rice harvest what will happen? Who will plant it and better question- where will it be planted? Will we glow green when we imbibe in the coming vintages, and not the usual red? I think the US will see a peak of interest in their own California Sake. It is a solidly made product that will soon enjoy more real estate on North American liquor shelves. Maybe this devastation will give rise to premium Sake being made on our side of the world. But for now my heart goes out to those affected by this disaster and each time I raise my glass I will hope that this industry will be able to re-build and eventually rejoice.

Deep brass colour, clean and bright with almost no colour loss. The nose was slightly nutty with some honeydew melon, apple peel and grass. I had a faint whisper of cork on first sniff but it passed. The nose became less appealing as it spent some time in the glass. In the mouth it was delicately floral with some red apple and lime peel. It was so balanced and still had a lot of acidity and body. I had originally left it in the cellar to find out how the sweetness level would play out in 5 years. It turned into a rather pleasant medium bodied, off dry white with some sweetness but definitely not like a sweet wine.

I tip my hat to Hans Christian Jost who I bought these bottles from. I never thought this wine would age but it has done so beautifully. I am impressed and think you have some excellent wines. For those of you who like delicate, floral whites like Riesling try to score a Cayuga once and do a comparison tasting. You won’t be disappointed.